You can learn a lot by watching real world examples of news stories. You see what works. And what doesn’t.
As you watch the video of a news story accompanying this article, look for my comments at the bottom of the screen.
Tips for Multimedia Journalists: Takeaways
Plan how you want to start your report and how you want to end it. This will keep your story heading in the right direction, and you won’t miss out any important information in the middle.
Since yo
u will have limited time, determine the most important video elements. And shoot them.
This sounds obvious, but many reporters discover they have the words but lack the visuals, as you’ll see in the accompanying video. You can’t say one thing while your pictures contradict it.
When planning your report, consider the five Ws:
- What – What is the story? Get the facts right before starting your report.
- Why – Why is the story important to your audience? Which points do you need to focus on to get their interest?
- Who – Who is involved? Think about who will be able to tell their sides of the story in an interesting way.
- Where – Where is the story happening, and where is the best place to shoot video?
- When – Has the story already happened, or is it about to happen? If it hasn’t happened, what can you tell viewers to expect?
If you’re looking to improve the storytelling skills of your staff or yourself, contact me: bob@kaplitz.tv.
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